His Last Night
by Serenitychan13
Summary: The final night of a condemned man... A look into the soul of the innocent criminal... What is Souzou Sagara thinking on the last night of his life? As his fear begins to overwhelm him, a special visitor shows up to help. Please leave a review! Be kind!


His Last Night

By: Serenity-chan

It was so cold that night. But he barely felt it. He could barely feel anything. His body was completely numb from shock. He almost didn't notice the thunderstorm raging outside. The bruised, battered young man sat alone, waiting. There was no chance of sleep tonight... He knew that tomorrow, his life was coming to an end.

He was going over the events of the day in his head. The members of the Sekihoutai were being called a false army, charged as traitors. He could still hear the official's cold voice saying "You're dismissed." He could still hear the cries of his dying men. They died still trying to protect him. The front of his shirt was stained dark red with the blood of his best friends. All of it because the Meiji government wanted to get around their many promises. But he felt no hatred towards them. All he could feel was grief.

'Sanosuke...'

He could still see the pain and fear in the boy's eyes. Sanosuke was the only member of the Sekihoutai that he knew could have escaped. He hoped that somehow, by some miracle, the boy had been able to get away. He wondered if Sanosuke had been serious when he said that he wanted his last name to be Sagara, just like his captain. He smiled bitterly at the thought.

'I'm just glad he doesn't have to see his captain now... It would probably kill him...'

Outside, he could hear them getting ready for tomorrow. They acted as if it were a major event, like a festival or something. The hairs on the back of his neck stood on end. He swallowed hard, trying not to think about what would happen tomorrow. His hands were shaking, and not just from being cold. Fear was freezing his blood.

He looked around, trying to think of something he could comfort himself with. But of course he found nothing. The bullet deep in his shoulder burned in pain, making him feel dizzy if he moved too much. Sighing, he gingerly shifted and slipped his hand into his pocket. To his surprise, his fingers found something hard and oddly shaped. He pulled it out to take a look at it. It was Sanosuke's clay whistle. His heart clenched painfully and he quickly stuck the misshapen whistle back into his pocket.

'He probably made it himself... Katsu was always telling him to get rid of that thing... It always sounded like an animal in pain...'

Pain...

Just thinking of the word brought his mind back to the cold, lonely darkness of reality. He shuddered as he wondered what it would be like tomorrow. Would it hurt at all? Or would it be over so quickly he wouldn't even feel it? Slowly, he ran his hand along the side of his throat. Before he could stop himself, he thought of the massacre of the Sekihoutai again. He had seen several men decapitated. They were the ones that shed the most blood. He wondered if they had felt the cold metal slicing into their skin. His stomach turned violently at the thought. Quickly, he clamped a hand over his mouth to keep from being sick. He felt a little bit like he was about to faint.

He closed his eyes and rocked back and forth, trying to calm himself down. What would happen tomorrow was inescapable. There was nothing he could do. Fear and anxiety were useless to him now, he told himself sternly. They would only make everything worse.

'Then why am I so scared?'

"You'll be with me again," said a soft voice. "Just like I said."

He recognized that voice... His little sister, Reika. She had died of a fever when he was eighteen. She was only ten when she died. They had been so close... About as close as brother and sister could get... He remembered staying by her side as life slowly drained away from her. She had told him not to worry, that one day she would see him again.

Slowly, he opened his eyes. His heart stopped for a second at what he saw. There was Reika, standing in front of him! She was smiling. Could this possibly be real? He shook his head to try and shake the image away.

'No... I'm just seeing things... I'm just wishing my sister were here to comfort me...'

He pushed all rational thought out of his head as the image of Reika came and sat down next to him. She looked up at him, just like she used to do, with her dark brown eyes shining. Slowly, just to make sure he hadn't finally lost it, he brought his hand up to stroke her hair. His eyes went wide as his fingers touched the silky black cascade that hung down her back, tied in a light purple ribbon.

"I've missed you," she said quietly.

His shoulders were shaking as he pulled his little sister into his lap, just as he had done when she was still a small child. He held her tight, trying hard to force back tears. After a while, he trusted himself enough to look down at his sister's face. She was still smiling, reaching a slim hand up to touch his face. Her hand was warm, just as it had been in life, and it was comforting to feel a caring hand wiping dried sweat, dirt and blood off his face. Closing his eyes, he covered her slender hand with his larger, sword-callused one.

"I've missed you too..."

She slipped her hand out from under his and wrapped her small, thin arms around him. He relaxed, resting his head on hers. She had always been terrified of thunderstorms, so when one hit, she would come and climb up in his lap. He always held her just like this to comfort her. Now she was comforting him and he knew he certainly was terrified right now. The feeling of being so close, like when she was younger, helped to calm his nerves and eased the pain of his grief. Even the sharp pain of the bullet hole in his shoulder died down to a dull sting. Outside, the storm continued to soak the land and temperatures dropped steadily.

"You know," she said, so softly he almost couldn't hear her. "It's really not so bad..."

"It still scares me..."

She had always been the only one he would ever admit to when he was scared of something. He would pick her up and set her on his lap, holding her close and asking her if she could keep a secret. He always knew the answer was yes. She would nod solemnly and rest her head on his shoulder. He knew he could tell her anything. When he saw her smiling at him, that right there was more than enough to push his fear away.

"I know," she said understandingly, snuggling closer to her beloved brother, wishing she could do something more to help him. "It scared me too. Then it happened and I wasn't scared anymore."

He took a deep, shuddering breath. Reika laid her head on his chest. All her life, when she was scared or upset about something, often he would wind up holding her just like this until she fell asleep. It felt warm, familiar and soothing... To both of them. Finally, he was able to bring himself to ask the question burning in his mind...

"Reika... It didn't hurt, did it?"

"A little," she said, her words muffled by his coat. "But it was all over in a few seconds... Most of the pain was inside... I knew how much I was going to miss everyone... Especially you..."

She looked up at him for a second, then sat up and kissed him on the cheek. He smiled at her, though there were tears in his eyes. She had only wanted to see him when she felt her life leaving her. He had held her in his arms, her hand in his as she passed on peacefully.

"Rei-chan... Then why are you here?"

He hadn't used that nickname since she was six years old. She had always been his 'little Rei.' She always said 'I'm not that little...' He always laughed. Her whole life, she had been small for her age and she knew it. The tiny girl looked up at him, her face determined and her eyes shining.

"I didn't want to go on without you," she said firmly; then she looked down again.

He could feel tears brimming in his eyes. She refused to pass on because she was waiting for him... A bitter thought passed through his mind.

'I guess brothers and sisters really do stay together through anything.'

"So, in a way," she continued almost inaudibly. "I'm happy for you. I'm glad you're coming back to me..."

Souzou Sagara held his sister close, then broke down and cried.

The next morning dawned cold and snowing. He woke up slowly to find himself alone again. He looked down, taking a deep breath and figuring it was all a dream. He tilted his head as he saw something light purple out of the corner of his eye. Slowly, he pushed the sleeve of his coat up and found Reika's favorite hair ribbon tied around his wrist.

As they bound his hands in front of him and led him away, he looked back. No one but him could see the little girl with her long black hair blowing all around her. She smiled at her brother. He heard her voice on the wind and his fear left him.

"I'm waiting for you."

As they forced him down on his knees, a single tear escaped from his eye. Not one of fear or even of grief. His heart tightened when he saw Sanosuke leaning against a wall on the edge of the crowd. That single crystalline drop was one of pure sorrow. The poor boy had never really had a father figure other than him, and now he had to see this... He wished he could have at least said goodbye...

He looked at Sanosuke again to find that the boy was no longer facing him. He was turned around, talking to a little girl with long black hair. The tiny girl took his hand and pulled him away towards something obviously very interesting. As she set off at a run, she turned her head quickly and winked at the condemned man. He smiled, grateful that Sanosuke wouldn't be there to see him die. Finally, he bowed his head and closed his eyes.

One stroke. It was quick and clean. He never felt it.

No one ever knew why Captain Sagara died with a smile on his face. But if they had looked very closely at the horizon, they might have seen his spirit along with the spirit of a little girl with long black hair, hand in hand. Together at last, brother and sister could pass on to the next world in peace. 


End file.
